You wrote: >>> With the thousands of soldiers a certain percentage (extremly small) probably refused to sign the parole just out of human nature if nothing else. What would become of these soldiers? Chase would close its doors to the prison in 65' for example. Would the prisoners who refused to sign be taken to another prison like Delaware? Or would they be placed in a federal or state jail? <<< AND >>> I'm sure Fort Delaware had it's small numbers of soldiers who refused to sign the parole also? What became of them? <<<

You mean "refuse to sign the Oath" don't you? The stand military "parole for exchange" and the Oath of Allegiance are not the same thing. Even though a parole is a personal oath or promise, we confuse other readers by using the terms "oath" and "parole" interchangeably when discussing Confederate POWs being released from POW camps after the war was over.

No paroles for exchange were given in POW camps after 4 MAY 1865 except for men belonging to Trans-Mississippi units, that I know of, and I would like to examine the documentation which supports any contention that there were. Absentees from their units who were not prisoners of war held in POW camps and who had not been accounted for otherwise under the surrender agreements continued to report into Federal parole centers, or Federal Provost Marshal offices, for the purpose of being accounted for and released on parole well into June and July of 1865. That is not what happened to those POWs actually being held in POW camps.

As to human nature, once there were no Confederate armies in the field, there was no point in not taking/signing the Oath. I am sure the Federal intent would have been to hold any further "refusinics" for trial or other disposition. Unfortunately, I have not come across any documented cases of Confederate prisoners who refused to take the Oath and gain their freedom when given the chance to do so under General Orders No. 109 in June 1865. Those alledged to have done this quickly changed their minds!!

Field grade officers, plus those of any rank who were graduates of United States military and naval academies, were required to apply to the President for a personal pardon and amnesty under General Orders No. 109. This delayed their individual releases for up to a month. The last of these officers to leave Fort Delaware left in late July 1865.

General Orders No. 109 also excepted from release those Confederate officers and men against whom criminal charges had been made for some event in which they were involved. These men were tried by military commissions and sentenced as deemed appropriate.

There are genealogy stories around that certain officers refused to take the Oath under General Orders No. 109 until an oath more to their liking was presented to them. Pure bunk!! Under General Orders No. 109 everybody took the standard military Oath of Allegiance. After that, they had the option to take the Johnson Amnesty Oath. The wording of the two Oaths are different. Each ex-Confederate was given a signed Oath certificate which he was take with him and keep on his person as long as needed. Of the few copies of these take home certificates signed in June and July 1865 that have surfaced in the Fort Delaware Society archives, about half are the standard military Oath of Allegiance, and the remainder are the Johnson Amnesty Oath. Some "myth makers" and story tellers have attempted to portray the difference in wording of these oaths as "something more to the liking" of the officers involved. Point is that they all first took the Oath of Allegiance with its wording about it being taken freely and without any mental reservation. They then had the option of taking and signing the Amnesty Oath, or signing the Oath of Allegiance and taking the appropriate certificate with them.

You wrote: >>> Because the majority of prisoners were taken to Chase via train, could explain why some of them elected to walk? Some probably never wanted ride a train again after their experience as POW's. <<<

An interesting speculation, but it was a personal choice, if made, and not because Federal transportation was not offered. However, I don't know of any returnees who were forced to ride the train or take a steamboat in lieu of walking home, other than to get off of Pea Patch Island, so it is possible some chose to walk all the way home. It is beyond my comprehension that anyone would refuse transportation, especially when faced with a 1,500 mile journey home.

Hugh Simmons
Fort Delaware Society
Website: www.fortdelaware.org
E-Mail: society@fortdelaware.org